April 2010

FCC Intros Working Paper Upon Accessibility & Technology Issues
[2010/4/28]
The Federal Communications Commission, an independent agency of the United States government that works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the media, public safety and homeland security, and modernizing the FCC, has announced to introduce its first ever working paper .....

Charlotte, N.C., and Mecklenburg County Seek Stimulus Funds for a Shared Broadband Network
[2010/4/28]
The grants and awards available in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are attractive, but competition is fierce .....

Kerry builds case for broadband
[2010/4/28]
At a public hearing Tuesday before the U.S. Senate's Small Business Committee, Senator John Kerry cited the efforts of Massachusetts officials to expand high-speed broadband service in rural Western Massachusetts .....

Puerto Rico awarded $25.8 million in broadband stimulus funds
[2010/4/28]
Critical Hub Networks has been awarded a $25.7 million ARRA grant through the US Department of Commerce to bridge the technological divide .....

Broadband wireless wins in NTIA’s final Round 1 stimulus awards
[2010/4/27]
Broadband wireless made a strong showing with the National Telecommunications and Information Agency yesterday, as the NTIA issued its final awards in Round 1 .....

Study: Arkansas The Most Competitive Broadband State
[2010/4/26]
Arkansas is the most competitive broadband state in the country, according to a new study by ID Insight and broadband consultant Craig Settles .....

RVA: FTTH passes 18.2 million N.A. homes
[2010/4/26]
Fiber-to-the-home infrastructure now passes more than 18.2 million North American homes, and more than 5.8 million of those are actually connected to FTTH service .....

IT&E to stop commenting on merits of $90M federal grant request
[2010/4/23]
IT&E said yesterday that it will no longer comment on the merits of its second application for federal grants amounting to some $90 million also for a broadband project .....

Mobile Broadband Now Skews National Broadband Statistics
[2010/4/22]
The rapid growth of mobile broadband might now be skewing "typical" or "average" broadband access speeds in a negative direction .....

Broadband Stimulus Dollars To build Emergency Communications Network for St. Louis and surrounding areas
[2010/4/20]
St. Louis Broadband, LLC has applied for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), broadband stimulus dollars from the Rural Utility Services division .....

Navajo Nation to Get Major Broadband Stimulus
[2010/4/19]
More than half of $63 million in US federal grants to increase broadband Internet access announced in late March will be spent on the Navajo Nation, which covers 27,000 square miles .....

House To Drill Down Into Broadband Plan
[2010/4/19]
Look for the FCC to get a lot more oversight of its national broadband plan (NBP) from the House Subcommittee on Communications, according to a memo sent .....

Six things you should know about broadband reclassification
[2010/4/16]
If you’re confused by all the talk about broadband reclassification, here’s what you need to know: .....

As expected, broadband plan architect Levin leaves FCC
[2010/4/16]
As expected, Blair Levin, major architect of the commission’s National Broadband Plan, announced Thursday he is leaving the commission for the private sector .....

Four counties vie for stimulus funds to improve rural broadband access
[2010/4/15]
Atlantic, Cumberland, Salem and Gloucester counties are jointly seeking $27 million to create a regional broadband network .....

Ambiguity muddies broadband stimulus award process
[2010/4/14]
When a word has more than one meaning, it can be a problem, particularly if the word is used inconsistently by an organization that others are looking to for direction. And that’s exactly the situation that has arisen with regard to the term “middle mile” .....

GTA TeleGuam protests IT&E's $8 million broadband stimulus award
[2010/4/13]
GTA TeleGuam's protest against Philippines-based IT&E's $8 million broadband stimulus grant to build a competing network in Guam is yet another sign that the Obama administration's broadband stimulus program, while intending to close the so-called broadband gap, is far from perfect .....

HickoryTech applies for $16.8M in stimulus funds
[2010/4/13]
HickoryTech Corp. said Tuesday it's applied for a federal stimulus grant worth $16.8 million. The company would use the funds to expand its broadband network in Minnesota .....

NTIA Hopes To Hand Out Balance Of Broadband Funds By End Of September
[2010/4/7]
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration said Wednesday that it received 867 applications for $11 billion in the second round of bidding for broadband stimulus funds .....

Broadband stimulus project demand exceeds funding for second time
[2010/4/7]
The Commerce Department received 867 applications requesting $11 billion in funding in proposed broadband projects across the U.S. in its second round .....

National Broadband Plan: When Opportunity Knocks, Is Anybody Home?
[2010/4/7]
“Genachowski to TV: Take It Or Leave It” blared the headline in TVNewsCheck, a leading industry publication. Referring to the FCC’s recent National Broadband Plan proposal to pay broadcasters to reallocate .....

FCC Loses Net Neutrality Case on Appeal: No Authority to Regulate Broadband
[2010/4/6]
In a decision with enormous potential consequences, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has ruled that the Federal Communications Commission does not have authority to regulate broadband services .....

Comcast Case Could Challenge FCC's Broadband Plan
[2010/4/5]
The FCC may face problems rolling out its National Broadband Plan if the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit decides it lacks sufficient authority to regulate broadband services .....

Applications Come In for Second Round of Broadband Stimulus Funding
[2010/4/4]
Applications for the second round of U.S. broadband stimulus funding are starting to become publicly available on a federal website .....

Broadband networks to expand in Lane, nearby counties
[2010/4/2]
The U.S. Department of Commerce last month awarded Oregon’s Lane, Klamath and Douglas Counties 8.3 million dollars with a mandate attached: expand high-speed broadband networks .....

Tech Beat: Stimulating broadband for the underserved
[2010/4/1]
Over the past year much has been done to stimulate new and expanded broadband service for our least served communities -- in California and across the nation .....

Pittsburgh Partners with CMU and CCAC for Stimulus Dollars
[2010/4/1]
The City of Pittsburgh has submitted an application for $14 million dollars in federal stimulus funds to expand wireless video security .....

Broadband funding ensures connection
[2010/4/1]
The Blandin Foundation and its coalition partners have been awarded a $4.7 million federal Broadband Technology Opportunities Program grant on behalf of rural Minnesota communities .....

March 2010

Rural Minnesota coalition awarded federal broadband stimulus grant
[2010/3/27]
The United States Department of Commerce announced this week that the Blandin Foundation and 19 coalition partners have been awarded a $4.7 million federal Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) grant .....

Hiawatha Broadband won't seek stimulus funding
[2010/3/27]
Hiawatha Broadband Communications Inc., based in Winona, has been working for the past 10 years to bring a fiber-to-home network to the Red Wing and Lake City area, .....

More Than 600 Groups Responded to Google’s Broadband Stimulus
[2010/3/26]
On Friday, Google announced the latest responses to their request for information on town seeking ultra high speed broadband connectivity .....

$2.5 million stimulus grant launches e-Vermont: the Community Broadband Project
[2010/3/25]
A $2.5 million federal Stimulus Grant from the federal Agency of Commerce, announced today, completes the funding to launch the $3.7 million “e-Vermont Community Broadband Project.” .....

LECs, Cable Change Minds About Broadband Stimulus
[2010/3/26]
Two incumbent phone providers, and some cable operators, have changed their minds about pursuing broadband stimulus funds .....

Indiana County again seeks broadband funding
[2010/3/26]
The Indiana County commissioners are taking a second shot at securing federal funding for expanded broadband service in the county .....

Feds award $4.7M stimulus grant for rural Minnesota broadband
[2010/3/25]
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced Thursday that it has awarded a $4.7 million grant to the Blandin Foundation and 19 partners in the Minnesota Intelligent Communities coalition to enhance broadband access .....

ACA Criticizes Some Broadband Stimulus Fund Distribution
[2010/3/25]
The American Cable Association says that the USDA's Rural Utilities Service has been handing out broadband stimulus money to fund service in competition with its members--small and medium-sized cable/telecom companies .....

FCC National Broadband Plan is Far-Reaching: CWA
[2010/3/18]
Communications Workers of America has released a statement on Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Plan. According to CWA president Larry Cohen, “the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Plan is a good roadmap .....

National Broadband Plan will Close Connectivity Gap for Healthcare Providers, Says Continua Health Alliance
[2010/3/18]
Continua Health Alliance, a non-profit, open industry coalition of a group of health care and technology companies, has lauded the Federal Communications Commission or “FCC" for its leadership and foresight in supporting health care delivery .....

FCC Unveiling National Broadband Plan – Met With Both Support and Dismay
[2010/3/17]
Public discussion of the ’spectrum crisis’ in America has been a hot topic lately, with spokespeople from every side of the argument voicing their opinions .....

F.C.C. Champions Broadband as Future of Communications
[2010/3/17]
There have been many different changes as countries have to figure out ways to deal with spectrum space being taken up by the increase in data traffic .....

Who else wants national broadband?
[2010/3/16]
Let's say that the Federal Communications Commission's $15.5 billion broadband deployment plan helps produce the fastest nationwide broadband network in the world -- is there any guarantee that more people will use it? .....

Cape Cod Wins Broadband Stimulus Grant
[2010/3/16]
In July 2009, Government Technology singled out the OpenCape Corporation, a nonprofit applicant for broadband stimulus money as a likely grant winner .....

CTIA Issues Statement on FCC's National Broadband Plan
[2010/3/16]
Steve Largent (News - Alert), president and CEO of CTIA-The Wireless Association, said he applauds the commitment of Broadband team to provide everyone equal access .....

FCC's national broadband plan
[2010/3/16]
The Washington Post's tech policy writer Cecilia Kang, who also authors the Post Tech blog, will be online Tuesday, March 15 at Noon ET to answer questions about the FCC's plan to bring high-speed Internet .....

National Broadband Plan Will Attempt to Resolve Contentious Voice Issues
[2010/3/16]
Given that the Federal Communications Commission "National Broadband Plan" is said to run about 376 mind-numbing pages long, quick but informed reaction to the document will be difficult .....

Obama and FCC Betting on Broadband as Stimulus
[2010/3/15]
The Federal Communications Commission and the Obama administration will unveil a plan Tuesday to broaden high-speed Internet access in the United States .....

FCC Launches Broadband Consumer Tools
[2010/3/12]
With the highly-anticipated National Broadband Plan due to be unveiled next week, the Federal Communications Commission launched new digital tools this week that allow consumers to test their broadband service and report areas where broadband is not available .....

Delaware County to apply for federal funds to develop fiber-optic broadband network
[2010/3/11]
The Delaware County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution Wednesday to apply for federal funds through the American Reinvestment Recovery Act of 2009 to join several other counties .....

Rough notes: What does the FCC’s National Broadband Plan mean for radio?
[2010/3/11]
Next Tuesday the Federal Communications Commission will reveal the entirety of its National Broadband Plan .....

Questions Arise About Tax Status of Broadband Stimulus, Smart Grid Awards
[2010/3/10]
There have been so many questions around the recent smart grid and broadband stimulus programs that only recently did interested parties stop to ponder whether these monies will be taxable .....

Horry County fights for stimulus funding for technology
[2010/3/10]
Horry County is partnering with Horry Telephone Cooperative to bring the latest in wireless broadband technology to the Grand Strand .....

Tax confusion could hamper broadband stimulus deployments
[2010/3/9]
Service providers and communities that were lucky enough to get a broadband grant in the first round of grant awards may have gotten through one hoop .....

Columbia County Oregon wins $13.5 Million Grant for Broadband Stimulus
[2010/3/9]
Columbia County, located in the U.S. state of Oregon, has won a grant of about $13.5 million from the Broadband Technology Opportunity Program (BTOP) .....

Louisiana Reaps $80 Million in Broadband Stimulus
[2010/3/8]
The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), has granted an $80 million broadband stimulus investment .....

NARUC Asks For Clarification on Broadband Grant Tax Status
[2010/3/8]
The nation's regulatory commissioners have asked the Treasury Department to clarify that the government's broadband stimulus grants are not taxable .....

National Broadband Plan has Two Major Provisions
[2010/3/8]
There are only two major areas where the Federal Communication Commission’s upcoming National Broadband Plan is likely to cause heated contention .....

The fastest broadband counties in the U.S.
[2010/3/8]
Late last week, data provider ID Insight published a list of what it called the “Top 25 Fastest Broadband Counties” – a list it claims is based on actual Internet access speeds .....

KeyOn's broadband stimulus apps rejected, stock tanks
[2010/3/8]
Rural wireless broadband operator KeyOn Communications announced that all 11 of its applications for broadband stimulus funds were rejected by the Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service .....

The poor don't care about broadband? Of course they do
[2010/3/7]
By now most Ars readers have been saturated with statistical data about broadband adoption in the United States: who has access, who doesn't, .....

What's Going On with Broadband Stimulus Funding
[2010/3/7]
Announcements for the first round of broadband stimulus grants and loans have slipped a bit; while all the announcements were supposed to be made by March 1, they are now expected to be made by March 15 .....

The Big Rub for the National Broadband Plan
[2010/3/5]
Leaked details of the Federal Communications Commission designs for the National Broadband Plan suggest an approach that is light on new government spending and incremental in its thinking .....

NCTA contends broadband stimulus funding is being misallocated
[2010/3/5]
One of the big problems with the broadband stimulus program is the lack of clarity on what actually is an "unserved" and "underserved" broadband area .....

Idaho Awarded Broadband Stimulus Grant
[2010/3/5]
A single project in Idaho has finally been awarded a grant from the federal government intended to improve broadband Internet access in rural areas .....

Deltacom Awarded $9.4 Million in Federal Stimulus Funding
[2010/3/4]
ITC^DeltaCom, Inc., a provider of integrated communications services to customers in the southeastern United States, has been awarded $9.4 million in federal stimulus funding .....

Is There a Broadband Gap?
[2010/3/4]
A Federal Communications Commission fall 2009 survey finds that 65 percent of American adults use fixed high-speed Internet connections from home .....

US Lawmakers Question Use of Broadband Stimulus Funds
[2010/3/4]
Several U.S. lawmakers questioned Thursday whether two agencies distributing US$7.2 billion for broadband deployment are making the best use of that money .....

US Agency Awards $255 Million in New Broadband Funds
[2010/3/4]
The U.S. Rural Utilities Service (RUS) on Thursday announced US$254.6 million in funding for 22 broadband deployment projects in 18 states .....

Barton Has Concerns About Stimulus Overbuilds As Well
[2010/3/4]
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association got some backup in its letter to the heads of the National Telecommunications & Information Administration on broadband stimulus grant money .....

Google throws down the broadband gauntlet
[2010/3/3]
You have to give Google points for great timing — and an entertaining sense of mischief .....

NTIA rewards Level3, others, with broadband stimulus grants
[2010/3/3]
Level3 Communications became the first “name” carrier to receive broadband stimulus money to enhance it fiber-optic network .....

FCC to Propose $25 Million in New Broadband Spending: Reports
[2010/3/3]
With the impending National Broadband Plan expected this month, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski is expected to propose up to $25 billion in new federal spending .....

Md. fails in first effort to receive U.S. funds for broadband
[2010/3/3]
A yearlong initial effort by two groups of local governments in Maryland to snag a portion of $7.2 billion in federal stimulus money to install broadband fiber-optic cable .....

What would you do for broadband funding? City changes name to ‘Google’
[2010/3/2]
Maybe I should call myself Rich “Chicago Bull” — I always wanted to play shooting guard next to Derrick Rose. That seems to be the strategy of Topeka, Kansas .....

Grant money can be found, if you know where — and how — to look
[2010/3/2]
One of the big questions on the minds of those tasked with executing the FCC’s mandate to convert land mobile radio systems .....

Extension Granted for Round 2 Broadband Stimulus Applications
[2010/3/2]
Applicants who are pursuing broadband stimulus grants intended for building broadband infrastructure received an extension .....

Washington State Gets $84 Million in Broadband Stimulus
[2010/3/1]
Washington State is the latest to get broadband stimulus money from the National Telecommunication and Information Administration .....